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After working through that presentation, you will be prepared to use Xcelsius

dashboards accessing BI query data via SAP NetWeaver BW connection in

your company.

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Topics

Learn how to build Xcelsius dashboards from scratch.

Understand how to use the new connectivity to directly access SAP

NetWeaver Business Warehouse queries in Xcelsius.

See how Xcelsius is used in SAP Business Suite 7 Innovations 2010.

Xcelsius is a tool where you can easily create interactive dashboards. Xcelsius

can be used today and is suitable for enterprise-wide deployment. The

dashboards can have appealing graphics and can be highly interactive. They

can be connected to many data sources and like this you can present up-to-

date data. Furthermore, the dashboards are intuitive and easily be consumed

by casual BI users like executives or managers. In the Xcelsius dashboads you

display aggregared and summarized data which is rather high-level. Like this

you can get an overview of the business performance of your company. So you

see that Xcelsius gives you an overview, and with this knowledge we continue

with the topic where Xcelsius is not intended for.

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Xcelsius is not inteded to replace comprehensive BI tools where you can do

your detailed operational reporting or OLAP analysis.

1. Xcelsius does not compete with operational reporting tools, and therefore

some performance-optimizing techniques for large result sets are not

implemented.

■ E.g. If your query result returns more rows than you display in the

dashboard, there is no paging which only transfers the rows which are

displayed like in BEx Web. Instead of dynamic reloading from the server in

case of scrolling down, Xcelsius transfers the entire result set already

initially.

■ Furthermore, the results cannot be exported to Excel. So you see that

Xcelsius is not intended to replace a detailed reporting tool.

2. Second, detailed OLAP analysis cannot be done in Xcelsius, because in the

dashboard it is already defined which drilldown- and analysis paths are

posible.

3. Third, Xcelsius is not intended to be the framework for building applications,

because there is no built-in persistence and state management. Like this it

cannot save your analysis state until you re-open it again and always have to

re-do your last analysis clicks.

However, Xcelsius dashboards give the user a fast overview of the business

performance.4

How does the entire creation process look like? At the left side you see the

creation process of a dashboards, where you require Xcelsius 2008 Enterprise

and an installed Excel on your computer. During the generation of the flash file,

the logic which is defined in Excel is converted to Adobe Flash, and therefore

you do not require Excel at runtime. The same is true for Xcelsius 2008

Enterprise, which you only need to create the dashboard, and not anymore at

runtime.

The flash file can be published to a portal, which could be SAP NetWeaver

Portal or also other portals like Microsoft SharePoint or IBM WebShere.

Furthermore, the flash file can also embedded into HTML, Microsoft office

applications or PDF. However, when using Microsoft Office or PDF, a refresh of

the SAP NetWeaver BW connection is not supported.

Finally, during runtime only a flash player is required and a connectivity to the

backend system where the data resides. This could e.g. be a BW system.

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Actually, there are many ways to connect your data to Xcelsius. You can e.g. use

existing Crystal and Web Intelligence reports either by using Live Office or Query as a

Web Service as connection layer to Xcelsius. You can also use existing Universes and

connect them through a Live Office or Query as a Web Service connection.

In your dashboard you can mix different data sources, e.g. SAP and non-SAP data.

In the past it was not straightforward in Xcelsius to display data from a SAP

NetWeaver Business Warehouse (e.g. via Universe and Live Office / QaaWS). What is

new now and available since July 2009 is that you can directly access SAP

NetWeaver BW queries and query views without the need of a universe and Live

Office / QaaWS integration. How easy the new connection is I will show in a demo

later. You do not only have access to the query data, but also you can access all query

information like characteristics, key figures, variables, and value help. Furthermore,

you can access technical information of the query: InfoProvider, author,…

Further use case - Integration of Xcelsius Dashboards in the Business Suite: Xcelsius

will be part of SAP Business Suite 7 Innovations 2010, where you can do analytics

within your business process – exactly where you need it to make informed decisions.

Example: Blocked order analysis due to negative credit check. analyze credit

history and credit status within your business application before deciding on canceling

or releasing the order.

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Note: If there are connection problems (e.g. Error 2032), this could be because

with the latest version of Xcelsius the cross domain access is stricter. With

changing the cross domain policy in the file crossdomain.xml) on the BW

backend, you can adjust your system landscape to make the backend system

accessible again.

To come to more details, we see here the functional scope of the SAP NetWeaver BW

connection. As already mentioned, we can directly use BW queries and query views

and can use all available query features like variables, filters, characteristics, key

figures. By using the query, you automatically have the appropriate BW authorization

checks.

With the full integration into the SAP NetWeaver platform, you can pass the

authorization for dashboard use (where a dashboard can use several queries which

are individually checked). The Life Cycle Management of SAP NetWeaver integrates

Xcelsius dashboards in the transport framework and allows you to transport

dashboards between different systems. The standard multilingual support can also be

used for texts in the dashboards. Using this feature, you can translate your

dashboards and use the translation of the underlying master data in the BW backend

system.

There is also a tight integration possibility into the SAP NetWeaver Portal , where you

can e.g. display the dashboard in the user-specific language. By using the SAP

NetWeaver platform, you do not require a SAP BusinessObjects Enterprise

installation.

Use this option (SAP NetWeaver BW connection) for

■ Pure SAP environment (no BOE)

■ Multilingual requirement

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For Building Dashboards

■ SAP BusinessObjects Xcelsius Enterprise 2008 SP2

■ SAP GUI 7.10 including BI AddOn 7.X patchlevel 901 or higher

■ Microsoft Office 2003 or 2007

For Consuming Dashboards

■ Flash Player 9 or higher

Server side NetWeaver Platform

■ SAP EHP1 for SAP NetWeaver BW 7.01 SP5 Java and ABAP

Technical Details

■ Data sources: BusinessObjects universes via Query As a Web Service or

Live Office, SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence and Crystal Reports via

SAP BusinessObjects Live Office, Microsoft Excel 2003/2007, XML

compliant databases, Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services 2003,

SOAP-based Web services, Adobe LiveCycle Data Services, Flash

Variables

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Publishing means that it is saved to the BW backend system. Launch means

that it is executed on the BW Java stack.

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Please note that you can only have one query per data connection. If you need

the data of more than one query in the dashboard then you have to create a

connection for each query.

You have two different options of how key figures are retrieved from the BW

system. Data can be retrieved as ‘raw’ or as ‘formatted’. In the first case the

BW system returns a pure numeric number without any formatting information

(such as thousands separators) and the formatting is done in Xcelsius. In the

latter case the BW returns a formatted string, including thousands separators,

decimals, units (if necessary) etc. The system will use the user-specific settings

for the decimal notation from the ABAP user.

Note: Formatted output is useful e.g. for tables. However, formatted output

should not be used as input for diagrams, because they require numbers and

only a text string is delivered. For diagrams, you can do the formatting e.g. of

the numbers in the mouse over in the component properties.

A key feature of that connection type is that it allows you to retrieve both the

query result and the list of values in a single execution. This greatly reduces the

number of connections in your Xcelsius dashboard (e.g. providing master data

for selector components).

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tn the connection definition settings you find areas for the input values as well as for the output

values. As input values you can set filter values or variable values (provided variables are

available for this query). The system shows the characteristics for which filter values and

variables can be set. You simply specify an Excel cell that holds the value for the filter / variable

selection.

The Output Values area contains all information that can be retrieved from the query. This

information can again be used by linking the output to the relevant Excel cells.

■ Cross-Tab Data contains the query result. Depending on your query definition (BEx Query

Designer), the result will include: key columns, data columns, calculated key figures,

restricted key figures, (sub-) total.

■ Under the node ‘Characteristics’ you find the relevant information about the characteristics

(and key figures), such as the description, key and text of the current filter value. In

addition you get a list of all possible characteristics values under Value Help. You can use

that list as a source for selector components like a drop down list and bring more

interactivity to your dashboard. This is a key feature of that connection because it allows

you to retrieve both the query result and the list of values in a single execution. This greatly

reduces the number of connections in your Xcelsius dashboard.

(The following features are supported: (sub) totals defined in the query, Calculated key figures,

Restricted key figures, Exception aggregations, Conditions, Filters, Variables, Default values.

However, the following features are not supported so far: Hierarchies, Exceptions, input

enabled queries, Planning features, interactive features know from the BEx frontends such as

drill down and swap axes)

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XComponents are SAP BusinessObjects and 3rd party driven solutions for Xcelsius. They are

NOT designed for productive use. Terms and conditions of usage:

http://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/boc/xcelsius?rid=/webcontent/uuid/b0900684-5b07-2c10-2ebf-

f070c0961ec8

As you probably know, Xcelsius does not provide a sophisticated hierarchy support. However,

in Xcelsius 2008 you can develop your own add-ons in Flex using the Xcelsius SDK. Some of

our customers and partners did that and they created so-called XComponents which support

hierarchies. Unfortunately the shown two XComponents which you get for free expect a

different layout of the data than it is provided by the query output.

At the left hand side you see the data which you get out from the Value Help in the Output

Values of the BW query: Parent Node ID, Node ID, Text. Then you need to shuffle this

information around in Excel to created the input format which is required by the Xtree

component. This can be done with the VLookup() function in Excel. Then you can use

Xcomponents like Xtree to display your hierarchy.

XTree for a selection of a value in a hierarchy. XTreeGrid similar, but in addition integrated with

a data grid to display data corresponding to the selected value.

Notes:

You can use a VLookup formula to look up data from the master table. VLookup finds the

relevant row where the text matches, and then you can return another column of that row.

If you have Flex Builder 3 installed, you can use that version of the Eclipse plug-in to manage

and develop your Xcelsius component projects, you just need to set your project to compile

against the Flex 2.0.1 SDK.

Search for a query with hierarchy: PM_BI_VC_Q002 (*hier*)

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Since Xcelsius Dashboards with BW connectivity run on the SAP NetWeaver BW Java

server, they can easily be integrated in portals. For integration into the SAP Enterprise

Portal, you do the following steps:

■ Create an iView in the Portal Content Directory PCD

■ Select the BEx Web Application iView template

■ Enter a name and ID for this new iView

■ Configure the BEx Web iView query string parameter to refer to the technical

name of your published Xcelsius dashboard object

For integration in Microsoft SharePoint:

■ Build the Xcelsius dashboard as usual; it can then be accessed by the BEx Web

launcher URL

■ Configure an iView with the dashboard as described above

■ Configure SSO between Sharepoint and SAP NetWeaver Enterprise Portal

■ Configure a iView Web Part pointing to the iView you just created

Integration in IBM WebShere Portal also posssible via iViews.

If your query uses mandatory variables the variable window will pop up when running

the query for the user to enter variable values. You can prevent the pop-up window by

using url parameters in the start url of the dashboard.

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SAP customers often operate in several countries and want to provide their

information in several languages. With the integration of Xcelsius dashboards in

the BW ABAP backend, you can enable translation support and specify which

texts are relevant for translation. Like this, you can use the existing SAP

translation tools for translation support, and you can translate your texts in the

ABAP backend.

In the Xcelsius dashboard, you can pass the language as URL parameter from

the Portal to the dashboard, and the dashboard automatically launches in the

country-specific version.

For those of you who come from the administration side and know the ABAP

transport mechanism, the text elements are stored as TLOGO objects in the

ABAP backend together with the flash file .swf and the model .xlf.

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Those of you who come from the technical side, will immediately see here how well

Xcelsius dashboards are now integrated in the BW transport mechanism. In Transport

Connection you find an object type Xcelsius Dashboard, and you can automatically

collect all objects which belong to a certain dashboard. These are e.g. all objects like

InfoCubes and Query elements which are required for executing the queries which are

used in the dashboard. These collected objects can now be transported across

different systems in the landscape.

Alternative: The Xcelsius dashboard can be stored on the BW server as a separate

object type (XCLS) and is fully integrated into the SAP BW system. This helps in

making use of different features such as transport, translation support, where-used

lists, and collection of dependent objects in the BW system. The stored dashboard

objects can be transported across different systems in the landscape.

(1. In the SAP BW system, go to transaction RSA1. Click on "Transport Connection".

Click on "Object Types" and find "Xcelsius dashboards" – (Object type – XCLS) – in

the list.

2. Click on "Collection Mode" on the right side and choose "Collect Automatically". The

option "Start Manual Collection" could be chosen for manual triggering of the collection

process at a later time.

3. Choose "Only Necessary objects" under "Grouping". This is required if we want to

limit the no: of objects being collected.

4. Select the display options to reflect "list".)

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Please note that the system will read query information on each connection defined in the

dashboard at the initial load, whether the connection is to be refreshed or not. This has an

impact on performance and it is recommended to have as few connections as possible defined

in the dashboard. Furthermore, there is no paging, and always the entire query result is

transmitted, even if only a small fraction of the query result is displayed in the dashboard.

Therefore, you should reduce the query result to significantly less than 1000 lines.

If you replace the query in the connection by another query then all connections to Excel ranges

where data is inserted or read from (see below) are cleared. (Make sure you have noted down

which data is written into which Excel range!!!). When building up a dashboard, Xcelsius will

read the necessary query information once the data connection is defined. If the query is

changed from BEx Query Designer after that, Xcelsius Designer will not notice these changes.

However, the BW web runtime will use the latest active version of the query when executing the

dashboard. Thus the definitions in the dashboard might not match the query definition or

structure anymore and problems may occur. It is highly recommended to check the dashboard

anytime the query structure is changed and, if necessary, re-import the query information into

the dashboard. To avoid this problem, instead of frequently changing queries you should prefer

to make a copy of this query once it is suitable for the dashboard.

Please notice: There have been performance improvements with SAP NetWeaver 7.0 SP6

Patch 20:

Variables can be used with a much better performance

Parallel query execution is supported

(RSTT = RS Trace Tool to trace the BEx query performance.)

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Central ideas

■ Deliver Xcelsius dashboards as add-on to standard BI content

■ Data retrieval via BI Queries

■ Xcelsius content will be launched (parameterized) via Launchpad or directly in the

application

■ Xcelsius dashboards are fully integrated into BI content and leverage existing BI Content

(investment protection)

Business Suite Analytics

■ Integration of BusinessObjects tools into the SAP NetWeaver BW landscape

■ Data retrieval via existing BI queries (investment protection)

■ Integration into existing SAP NetWeaver BW Lifecycle Mgmt and repository

■ Integration into the Report Launchpad and SAP Enterprise Portal content of the Business

Suite application with context awareness for the Business Content

SAP content delivery: For Xcelsius, SAP develops, delivers & maintains standard content

Customer‘s option: Customers can define their own dashboards based on existing BI content

or threir own queries

Scenario variants:

■ Launchpad - WD ABAP application which can dynamically generate URL by adding text

snippets to the URL

■ If dashboard is used within an application, the application context can be handed over.

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BI_CONT_EXT 7.05 contains Xcelsius dashboards and requires 7.02

BI_CONT 7.05 requires 7.0

Important: No BOE server required for using Xcelsius Analytics.

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At the left side you see the minimal required product versions

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Classic InfoSets are created in transaction SQ02

In transaction SQBWPROP you can release the InfoSet for BW analysis

Level 1: Analysis Frontend: Xcelsius

Level 2: Business Query: BW query

Level 3: Business Data Provisioning (BW): a) Transient InfoProvider b)

InfoProvider

Level 4: Operational InfoProvider: a) InfoSet b) Data Source

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